Latest news with #PatrickSpence
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Sonos updates its Ace headphones with major new features as it recovers from difficult year
Sonos will release a host of new updates for its Ace headphones, after they were caught up in the company's disastrous app update. The Ace headphones were first released almost exactly a year ago, after being announced in May 2024. They received positive reviews – but were immediately dragged into a major crisis for Sonos, which led to the company losing its chief executive among other changes. The release of the Sonos Ace required an update to the app the company makes to control not only the headphones but all of its smart speakers. When that app update was released, it immediately broke many users' setups. In the year since, Sonos has been recovering from the problems. Its chief executive Patrick Spence has left the company, it has been forced to re-focus on fixing the app, and it has apologised to users a number of times. Those problems meant that the headphones were somewhat overshadowed by the company's other problems. But now it has released a host of new features aimed at putting the focus back on the Ace. They include improved noise cancelling, a new feature that allows the headphones to model the room they are being used in to give the feeling that the sound is really being projected into it, and improved calling features. The headline feature of the Ace – which allows them to switch audio from a soundbar to the headphones, for a private experience while watching TV – can now also be used by two people at once, for when a couple might want to watch without disturbing their children, for instance. Sonos said that the feature update was driven by a focus on ensuring that the headphones created 'lasting value' and were a result of a 'considered approach' that rejected 'trend-driven obsolescence', according to Jason White, Sonos's head of software. 'We built a platform that was powerful enough that we could deliver new features and functions through software with time,' he said. 'The company's perspective is that we should narrow our focus and do those things as excellently as we can,' said Dana Krieger, vice president of design at Sonos. 'We really want to make sure [releases] provide value when we do them, and not just put more churn and noise into the world. But Mr White acknowledged that many users may be concerned about software updates given the company's recent track record. The company has made 'a number of changes throughout the way we do software' in response to the recent problems, Mr White said. That includes a 'more diligent approach' to looking at data from users, as well as more specific testing in advance of the release. Some of the new releases, such as the TrueCinema feature that models the room to match its sound within the headphones, had been promised at launch. Sonos said that it had received feedback from early users that suggested it wasn't ready, and that it had been working to improve it since as a result. But others – such as expanding the TV Audio Swap feature to two uses – had not been anticipated when the headphones were first released. When it built the product, Sonos ensured there was 'space in the back end' of the product 'so that we can actually be responsive to customer features', Mr White said. 'We have our own forward-looking roadmap for software features for literally all of our products, but at the same time we don't want to be so restrictive that we can't respond to customer feedback,' he said. 'I think that's a lesson that was even more particularly highlighted in the last year.' Sign in to access your portfolio
Digital Trends
22-05-2025
- Business
- Digital Trends
‘A profound mistake': Sonos' CEO talks about its broken app and why it's been so hard to fix
On May 7, 2024, Sonos launched a new version of its software intended to help customers manage their music and their Sonos system more easily, and with fewer taps. What happened next can only be described as a fiasco. Upon opening the new app for the first time, Sonos users were not only greeted with an unfamiliar interface, many found that their systems had become unresponsive and that features they had come to rely on (like alarms and play queue access) had evaporated. As days and weeks passed, it became clear that these weren't temporary glitches. Sonos' CEO, Patrick Spence, spent the following summer and fall apologizing and assuring his customers (and presumably his board of directors) that the company had adopted an all-hands-on-deck stance and that fixing the broken app was everyone's top priority. However, eight months after the launch the app was still far from fixed and Spence was fired on January 13, 2025. His replacement, board member Tom Conrad, was announced the same day. Conrad's list of previous gigs in senior engineering and product roles at companies like Pandora, Snapchat, Quibi, and Apple makes him a strong choice as Sonos' interim CEO. But that doesn't mean it's been an easy transition. Recommended Videos In fact, when I caught up with Conrad on his 116th day on the job, he described it as a fairly hellish period marked by a number of challenges, including his family's relocation from Los Angeles to Santa Barbara — a small distance on the map that nonetheless turned into a mini odyssey beset by the unprecedented L.A. wildfires, four different AirBnBs, two flat tires, and having his L.A. home burglarized. Oh, and his dog got skunked. Twice. And that was before we started to chat about the job he'd been hired to do: Fix the still-broken Sonos platform so that its customers could finally get back to enjoying their music. Our short chat managed to cover lot of ground: the company, its products, its now-defunct Ikea partnership, and, of course, the app (and why, one year later, our Sonos systems still aren't working as they should.) Too many silos When he arrived, Conrad discovered that Sonos' internal teams were siloed by product category (headphones, home theater, etc.), making it difficult to prioritize, share resources, or maintain a cohesive user experience. 'The first thing that I did was to take that apart and put the team back together into hardware and software design, and then do a comprehensive inventory of all of the projects that were underway, many of which, it turned out, were insufficiently staffed for success.' Conrad slashed a list of 'dozens' of these projects down to 11 well-staffed initiatives. 'It changed the mood inside the company, kind of overnight.' A neglected core It also became apparent that the sheer number of projects and silos had played a big role in the atrophy of Sonos' core software platform. Since 2019, Sonos had launched a lot of new products. Dolby Atmos soundbars, two types of portable speaker, a Sonos-developed voice assistant, its first wireless headphones, plus a major push into the professional installation market. 'The investment that the company was making [in the core software],' Conrad notes, 'was not enough.' And while the app redesign fiasco of 2024 is simply the most recent symptom of this neglect, Conrad says it's responsible for the kinds of reliability and performance issues that have been left unaddressed since 2019, or longer. No more trust Clearly, having a customer base that can't use your product isn't ideal for any company. 'No one wakes up in the morning and says, I want to spend some time in the Sonos app today,' Conrad quipped. He's crystal clear on the gap between how the app should work: 'I think we have one obligation. The experience has to be fast, reliable, usable, and mostly get out of your way,' versus where it's at today, 'The sad reality is that Sonos still fails too often.' But the worst part of the redesign's fallout has been the erosion of trust. 'The rollout of the app last year was such a profound mistake. All of the goodwill that our customers would normally have applied when they have a little hiccup in their experience — we don't get any of that benefit of the doubt.' Legacy is still Sonos' greatest strength … and its greatest weakness Conrad also appears to be gradually making his peace with an inconvenient and unavoidable truth: Longtime Sonos customers often own wireless speakers and components that date back to 2010 or older, and they expect them to keep working — 'even though the iPhone 4 they bought the same year has long been relegated to the dust bin.' He reminded me that Sonos gear is 'sensitive to the details of your home network in ways that almost nothing else you own is.' We discussed the intricacies of Wi-Fi and how, long before there were any commercially available mesh routers like Eero or Orbi, the company had created its own mesh system known as SonosNet. For a moment, it sounded like Conrad might be trying to blame the company's performance woes on its customers' networks. In fairness, we live in a very different Wi-Fi environment than the one Sonos found itself in back in 2005, when it launched its first product. However, he acknowledged that despite these challenges, Sonos has to own the solutions. 'We made promises to our customers that we will synchronize audio across their [devices], and so we have to solve for this environment. This is the life we've chosen.' He's also quick to point out that if once-loyal Sonos customers now instinctively blame the company's products (instead of looking at their internet connection or Wi-Fi for the flaw), 'it's totally deserved.' Brighter days ahead One of the biggest problems with the new app is that it hasn't proven to be an easier-to-use experience than the one it replaced. Conrad sympathizes with those who are wondering, 'Why did Sonos invent this new navigation paradigm?' Like many Sonos users, he can be quite critical. 'It's not my appraisal that all of those design decisions were good ones.' Still, Conrad sounds confident about the future. 'I think we really have cracked the code on the big issues that we needed to solve on performance and reliability, and we're well on our way to putting that chapter behind us.' He says that fixes to the remaining usability and experiential issues are coming through the summer and fall. ' I feel really great about Sonos right now.' On Ikea and that mysterious Pinewood project At the tail end of our chat, I was able to squeeze in one last series of questions around the end of the Ikea Symfonisk speaker partnership — one which produced the most affordable and decor-friendly Sonos speakers to date. Why nix such a seemingly good match? 'That partnership is eight years old and has diminished to the point of being immaterial to our business and theirs. It was a question of walking away from something whose heyday was long in the rearview.' I was surprised to hear that, given how well the Symfonisk speakers matched Sonos' previous mission statement of 'fill every home with music.' 'That line of thinking is how we got into the partnership,' Conrad acknowledged, 'but it's not really how it ever played out in the real world.' As for the much-rumored but never officially discussed Pinewood project — Sonos' now-shelved move into the video streaming world — Conrad refused to be drawn into a discussion. However, he did note that, 'You have to know what you can be best in the world at, and you have to bite off an appropriate amount to tackle. Without commenting specifically, you'll see us continue to focus where we can win.' Down, but not out From the start of his tenure as Sonos' CEO, Conrad has said all of the right things. I came away from our chat believing that even though Sonos' problems run deeper than anyone had previously acknowledged, he's focused on what matters most: restoring our Sonos systems so that they just work. Unfortunately, it sounds like it's going to be several more months — at least — until that day arrives. Some Sonos customers have already called it quits and I can't say I blame them. Our home has Sonos speakers in every room (including one of the bathrooms) and my family has grown weary of not being able to play the music they want without encountering bugs. We've even started saying 'Sonos' as curse word, kinda like Jerry Seinfeld used to utter the name of his nemesis, Newman. Still, when it works, I have yet to find a multiroom audio system that sounds as good and has as many useful features as Sonos. Wiim is catching up fast — very fast — but for all of its strengths (design, hi-res compatibility, affordability, and reliability), it's still not as simple and easy to use as Sonos (again, when it works). I'll be sticking with Sonos for a little longer. As frustrated as I am by its ongoing issues, I think Tom Conrad deserves a shot at fixing them. And since Sonos didn't get itself into this mess overnight (even though that's what it felt like to most of us), I know the fix will also take time. I just hope that patiently waiting doesn't also prove to be a profound mistake.
BBC News
11-05-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Mr Bates and Mr Loverman win top Bafta TV Awards
Mr Loverman and Mr Bates vs the Post Office were among the big winners at Sunday's Bafta TV Awards, in a night which threw up several surprise winners. ITV's dramatisation of the post office scandal, which led to widespread public outcry about the false convictions of sub-postmasters, was named best drama series, while ITV was given a special award to recognise the show's impact. Producer Patrick Spence said: "This story only had the impact it did because the people that watched it stood up and demanded action with rage."Meanwhile, Mr Loverman, about an elderly man whose marriage falls apart after his long-term affair with his male friend is revealed, won two major acting prizes. Accepting the prize for limited series on behalf of Mr Bates vs the Post Office, Spence said the response to the show proved that the public "cannot abide liars and bullies".He added that "maybe it is a warning to those who are supposed to have our backs, that they'd better not abuse that power", and said: "Our show didn't change the law, the people of this nation did that."Managing director of ITV Studios, Kevin Lygo, said it was "part of a long tradition on TV of these genres that true stories that shine a light on corruption, criminality, miscarriages of justice... but nothing, I think, has had quite the effects Mr Bates has had."However, two of the drama's main stars Toby Jones and Monica Dolan missed out on acting best leading actress went to Industry star Marisa Abela, while best leading and supporting actor were won by Mr Loverman's Lennie James and Ariyon Bakare respectively. "I didn't think this was coming my way," said James, describing his win as a "fantastic honour", as he paid tribute to his fellow nominees, including David Tennant, Martin Freeman and Richard Gadd. James thanked Bernardine Evaristo, who wrote the book the series was based on. "Thank you for trusting us with your characters," he said. Bakare, who played his lover, said: "This award stands on the shoulders of those who came before me, those who might have been afraid to come out, to be who what they want to be, and I just say thank you for them." Abela, who has also played Amy Winehouse in the musical biopic Back To Black, described her leading actress win as "insane".She noted that she was cast in the show, about a group of young finance graduates, "when I was in my final year of drama school, and my agent who signed me in my final year is here tonight - Saskia thank you so much for believing in me"."I've been filming Industry for about six years now, and Bad Wolf and HBO, the fact that they let us carry on after season one, it's mental. They're the best." Ruth Jones won best female comedy performance for her role in Gavin & Stacey: The Finale, which was broadcast at Christmas and brought the hugely popular sitcom to a close. She accepted her award in character as Nessa, beginning her speech in her alter-ego's distinctive Welsh accent and saying: "I'm not gonna lie, this is immense."I've won a Bafta before, course I have, in 1976," she continued as Nessa. "It was the Barry Arcade Fruit Technician Award."She concluded her speech - returning to herself - by thanking her "dear, talented, lovely, kind, funny friend, James Corden, with whom I have shared this astonishing journey for the past 17 years, and without whom, Nessa Shanessa Jenkins would not exist". There was another Gavin & Stacey reference elsewhere in the ceremony, when host Alan Cumming asked Rob Brydon to finally answer the question of what happened on the show's notorious fishing Brydon began to speak, Cumming interrupted: "Oh, sorry, Rob. We've got to go straight on with the next award. We'll pick it up at next year's Baftas." Danny Dyer won best male comedy performance for his role in Mr Bigstuff, in which he played one of two brothers with wildly different personalities who try to patch up their sibling said he was "choked up" by his win, before joking: "So my acting was so bad, it was funny?"In an expletive-laden speech, he said it had been "an honour to share the screen" with his co-star Harriet Webb, and thanked writer and co-star Ryan Sampson, who he called the "best thing to come out of Rotherham"."He's never done the same thing twice, which is not something I can say," Dyer joked. "You wrote this part, you won this for me mate, I really appreciate it." Blue Lights, a police drama set in Northern Ireland, was named best drama series, Alma's Not Normal won best scripted comedy, and EastEnders was named best soap, in the year it celebrates 40 years on Traitors missed out on the three prizes it was nominated for, with best reality series instead going to Channel 4's Jury: Murder Trial, which restaged a trial of murder in front of two juries of ordinary people. Baby Reindeer star Jessica Gunning won best supporting actress, repeating her earlier wins at the Golden Globes, Emmys and SAG Awards. "Gosh thank you Bafta, wow," she said. "I sometimes do this kind of cheesy thing where I look back on the younger me and moments in my life, and I imagine the kind of then me, seeing me now, and think, 'little did we know'."She said she was so proud to be part of this show before saying co-star Richard Gadd "changed my life". She concluded by wishing him: "Happy birthday, nipple." Rylan Clark and Rob Rinder won the factual entertainment prize for their Italian travel series, Rob & Rylan's Grand Tour."We didn't know what we were making when we landed in Venice," reflected he saw the programme's edit, "I said, 'we're either going to get cancelled or we're going to win a Bafta, and I'm so glad it was the latter!"Rinder thanked the pair's mothers, "for allowing us to be our true selves," before Rylan joked: "And BBC Arts, now we won a Bafta, can we have a bigger styling budget?" Elsewhere, Would I Lie To You? was named best entertainment Lee Mack noted the show had never previously won despite being nominated eight times, and joked that Bafta's change of sponsor to P&O Cruises, which host Rob Brydon used to front adverts for, might have had an effect."The whiff of scandal hangs heavy in the air," laughed Brydon, but reassured the audience: "I stopped those adverts five years ago, there is no connection." Kirsty Wark, who left BBC Two's Newsnight last summer after 30 years, received the Bafta Fellowship, the highest honour bestowed by the British said it was a "privilege and an honour" to be recognised. "Things have changed so much and so radically since the 70s, not least the shoulder pads, the office drinks trolley, and film crews the size of football teams, but always the chance to learn and go."I've been lucky to interviews politicians to painters, architects to economists, musicians and a few monsters." She paid tribute to her colleagues, saying: "It takes a village to raise a programme." Strictly Come Dancing won the memorable moment prize, the only award of the night voted for by the public, for blind comedian Chris McCausland's waltz to You'll Never Walk AloneHis professional dance partner Diane Buswell said it was "such an honour" to win, joking: "Chris is not here tonight, but that's what happens when he insists on driving himself to these kinds of events.""He told me to say that," she laughed, before reading out a message on McCausland's behalf: "After 22 years in comedy, I win a Bafta for dancing. It hurts, but I'll take it."The winning couple's "blackout" dance saw McCausland place his hands over Buswell's eyes as the room faded to black, mimicking his everyday experience, before the pair continued their dance when the lights returned and pyrotechnics said: "In one minute and 30 seconds of a dance, I feel like this told such a story. A story of hope, determination, resilience and vulnerability."
The Guardian
11-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
ITV's Mr Bates vs the Post Office stars at Bafta TV awards
Mr Bates vs the Post Office took centre stage at the Bafta television awards on Sunday, winning an award and being praised for showcasing the power of television to 'change hearts and minds' and forcing positive change. The show won best limited drama, ITV was given a special award for commissioning the show, and BBC One won the current affairs gong for a Post Office special on BBC Breakfast. 'This story only had the impact it did because the people that watched it stood up and demanded action with rage,' said the drama's producer Patrick Spence in his acceptance speech. 'May it be a warning to those who are supposed to have our backs. We cannot abide liars and bullies.' He thanked audiences for their engagement in the series. 'Our show didn't change the law, the people of this nation did that,' he said. Mr Bates vs the Post Office won in a category thought to be tightly contested, up against Baby Reindeer. The ITV drama spotlighted one of the worst miscarriages of justice in British history, influenced policy change in government and reopened the case to seek justice for post office operators wrongly accused of theft and fraud. ITV's director of television, Kevin Lygo, used his speech in collecting the special award to push public service broadcasters. 'At a time when funding is tricky but not impossible, ITV and the BBC must continue to make these stories which hold power to account,' he said. 'We will continue to make them. As long as we are here, we will continue to do it.' He signed off by demanding payouts for wronged post office operators who have not yet been received funds from a compensation scheme. 'Will you hurry up and pay these people what they are due,' he said in a message to the government. The Bafta chair, Sara Putt, commended the show in the opening speech of the night. 'This is public service television at its best and shows the power of TV to change hearts and minds,' she told the ceremony at the Royal Festival Hall in London. Putt also call for more gender equality and recognition of disabled people in television. 'The talent is there; we need to create access to the pipelines that recognise, support, and highlight that talent,' she said. The leading actress Bafta went to the rising star Marisa Abela for her portrayal of Yasmin in the drama Industry. She was holding back tears of joy reading her speech. 'I booked Industry when I was in my final year of drama school and my agent who was in my final performance is here tonight – thank you!' she said. One of the biggest surprises of the night came as the Northern Irish police drama Blue Lights picked up the drama series Bafta. 'Thank you to the people of our home city for letting us tell your stories,' said the writer Declan Lawn. 'Belfast, this one's for you.' Lennie James won the leading actor award for his portrayal of Barrington Walker in Mr Loverman, the story of a closeted Antiguan Londoner whose marriage collapses after it emerges he has been having a decades-long affair with his male best friend. James's voice quaked when he thanked Bernardine Evaristo, who wrote the novel on which the show is based, for 'trusting us with your characters. What a night!' Ariyon Bakare won supporting actor for his turn as Morris De La Roux, the secret gay partner of Walker in Mr Loverman. Fighting back tears, Bakare said: 'This award stands on the shoulders of those before me, those who have been afraid to come out, to be who they want to be. I hope you feel just as confident as we did when we made the show.' After a sweltering sun had lit up London's South Bank during the day, stars took over on the night. British television's biggest names swaggered down the red carpet and into the Royal Festival Hall. Some stopped for interviews and all stopped for photographs, the atmosphere buzzing as stars paraded down the carpet in flamboyant dress. Jessica Gunning won supporting actress for playing the stalker Martha in Baby Reindeer. She teared up thanking her team and the show's creator Richard Gadd, telling the audience the show had changed her life. 'This time last year, Richard and I were stood backstage waiting to go out to present an award,' she said. 'Little did we know what the year had in store for us.' The Jury: Murder Trial was a surprising win in the reality TV category, pipping the favourite The Traitors to the award. The journalist Kirsty Wark accepted a Bafta lifetime achievement award for her outstanding contribution to news and current affairs broadcasting. She looked back on her career in her speech. 'I've been lucky to interview everyone from politicians to painters, architects to economists. It takes a village to raise a programme,' she said. Danny Dyer scooped up the male performance in a comedy award for his role as X in Mr Bigstuff. 'The acting was so bad – it was funny,' he joked in his speech. Dropping out expletives and cupping his mouth as they fell, he finished by speaking directly to his daughters in the audience: 'I done it, girls, I fuckin' done it.' Ruth Jones won female performance in a comedy for her portrayal of Ness in Gavin and Stacey. She arrived on stage in character and joked to the ceremony: 'I'm not gonna lie, this is immense. I wasn't expecting this no way. I won a Bafta before, of course I did, in 1976 – it was crackin'.' She became Ruth Jones again after a chorus of laughter from the crowd. 'The person I would like to thank the most is my dear, dear, talented, lovely, funny friend James Corden, with whom I have shared this astonishing journey for the past 17 years, and without whom Vanessa Shanessa Jenkins would not exist.' Ukraine: Enemy in the Woods won in the single documentary category. 'People are still fighting out there and we're just really proud that we were able to tell these stories,' said Jamie Roberts, the programme's director. 'I hope we can continue to make documentaries like this. It's what we live for.'
Yahoo
11-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
BAFTA TV Awards 2025: Post Office drama and Mr Loverman among big winners
Mr Bates Vs The Post Office and Mr Loverman were among the big winners at this year's BAFTA TV awards - with Danny Dyer and Ruth Jones picking up comedy prizes. After Mr Bates was named the winner of the TV for best limited drama, ITV was also given a special award for commissioning a show that "brought dynamic change". The four-part series, which aired in January 2024, depicted how former subpostmasters and subpostmistresses were held liable by the Post Office for financial discrepancies thrown up by its computerised accounting system, Horizon - shining a light on one of the widest miscarriages of justice in UK legal history. Producer Patrick Spence said the show could never have been made without ITV, as well as the journalists who covered the wrongful convictions, and those who campaigned about the scandal. "Our show didn't change the law, the people of this nation did that," he said. Mr Bates stars Toby Jones and Monica Dolan missed out on prizes in the acting categories, with Marisa Abela named best actress for her performance in Industry and Lennie James named best actor for Mr Loverman, a series based on the novel of the same name by Booker Prize winner Bernadine Evaristo. Both winners seemed shocked to receive the gongs, with first-time nominee Abela saying: "Oh my god, I really wasn't expecting that at all... This is insane." James described the win as a "fantastic honour". Earlier in the night, his co-star Ariyon Bakare took home the prize for best supporting actor, while Baby Reindeer's Jessica Gunning picked up the gong for best supporting actress. Elsewhere, Dyer got one of the night's biggest cheers as his first ever BAFTA was announced - the award for male performance in a comedy, for his role in Sky's Mr Bigstuff - while Jones's final performance as Nessa in the long-awaited Gavin & Stacey: The Finale earned her the female comedy performance gong. Accepting his prize, Dyer said "the acting was so bad it was funny", before he swore several times despite being warned about the rules. He also thanked his family, and writer and actor Ryan Sampson, who he called the "best thing to come out of Rotherham". "I'm not going to lie this is immense," said Jones as she collected her award. "The person I would like to thank most his my dear, dear talented friend James Corden." She said without British actor Corden, her co-creator and co-star, "Vanessa Shanessa Nessa' Jenkins would not exist". Read more: Wins for other shows included best drama for Blue Lights, best soap for EastEnders, best scripted comedy for Alma's Not Normal, best entertainment performance for Joe Lycett's Late Night Lycett, and best entertainment programme for Would I Lie To You? This year's BAFTA Fellowship, the highest accolade given by the organisation, in recognition of an outstanding and exceptional contribution to film, games or television, was presented to broadcaster Kirsty Wark for her "unwavering dedication and unmatched legacy in the world of news and current affairs broadcasting". Two new categories celebrating children's television were also introduced this yearm with CBeebies As You Like It at Shakespeare's Globe taking home the inaugural prize for best children's scripted, and Sky's Disability and Me (FYI Investigates) winning the non-scripted prize. The main ceremony, which was hosted by actor and presenter Alan Cumming at London's Royal Festival Hall, came two weeks after the BAFTA craft ceremony for technical awards - where Baby Reindeer, Rivals and Slow Horses each picked up two prizes.
